The Council to Advance Hunting and Shooting Sports (Council), in collaboration with Southwick Associates, released its annual report on hunting license sales. The data shows a steady trend for the 2022/23 license year, with over 80 percent of participating states experiencing a change of 5 percent or less in hunting license sales from the previous year.

In early 2021, the Council surveyed state wildlife agencies, which showed an overall increase in hunting license sales, up 4.9 percent from 2019 to 2020. The Council attributed the rise to the surge in outdoor recreation during the first year of COVID-19; however, as the pandemic extended into its second year, 2021 saw a dip of 1.9 percent in overall sales despite the continued high demand for outdoor activities, particularly among nonresident hunters.

The Council revisited the study in early 2023 to track trends in hunting license sales for the 2022/23 license year and found a 3.1 percent decline in sales compared to the 2020/21 license year; however, the latest report for 2022/23 showed a much smaller decrease of 0.3 percent across the 47 states that participated in the Council’s study, suggesting participation rates have stabilized.

“The 2022/23 hunting license sales indicate that participation is likely relatively stable at the national level,” said Swanny Evans, director of research and partnerships at the Council. “This is a positive sign for the hunting and conservation community.”

Key findings from the Council’s 2022/23 Hunting License Sales Report include:

  • A 0.3 percent overall decrease in hunting license sales compared to 2021/22, with resident sales down by 0.2 percent and nonresident sales by 0.6 percent.
  • 51 percent of the 47 reporting states saw an increase in license sales.
  • The Midwest region saw a slight increase in sales of 1.0 percent, while the Northeast, Southeast, and Western regions saw decreases ranging from 0.6 percent to 2.1 percent.
  • Monthly sales varied throughout the year, with notable increases in March, May, August, October, November, and December.

To view the full report, go here.

Image courtesy Stacker